Tag: mobile

After admitting that it was sometimes slowing processor speeds on older iPhones, Apple discounted its out-of-warranty battery replacement from $50 to $30 starting at the tail end of last year. But for anyone who bought one at any point in 2017 for iPhone 6 or later devices, the tech giant is offering a $50 credit.

Digital security has always been paramount, but the advent of tablets and smartphones has allowed us take much more data with us on the go. A combination of two-factor authentication and effective password management is usually enough to keep nefarious types away from your accounts, but Yubico has introduced an extra layer of safety for iOS that lets you seamlessly log into apps by hovering a YubiKey behind your phone.

Apple’s new chip for the next-gen iPhones is smaller than its predecessors — it’s also already in production, according to a new report by Bloomberg. Cupertino’s manufacturing partner, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co., has reportedly started mass producing the 7-nanometer chip that was created to be faster and more efficient than the 10-nanometer design (used for the iPhone 8 and X) it’s replacing. It will enable faster app loading times and longer battery life, which are qualities that can convince buyers to get an iPhone instead of a Galaxy S or any other device from its competitors.

China has been giving Apple grief over more than VPN apps, it seems. The 9to5Mac team has obtained messages telling iOS developers to remove CallKit (a framework that uses an Apple-made calling interface for other apps) from their apps if they want to continue offering those apps in China. The move reportedly followed “newly enforced regulation” from the country’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, although the message isn’t specific about the law. We’ve asked Apple for more details.

Today, May 17th, is Global Accessibility Awareness Day, but in fact, this entire month has been an eventful one people with disabilities. Two weeks ago, Google and Microsoft pledged to commit $20 and $25 million to the cause, respectively, to accessibility tech. Today, Microsoft revealed the Xbox Adaptive Controller, while Apple unveiled a coding curriculum that can also be used by students who are deaf and/or blind. Meanwhile, Oath, Engadget’s parent company which also owns Yahoo, rang in the day by holding an open house at its accessibility lab, where, among other things, it works to make sites like ours easier for everyone to use.

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A number of US Representatives introduced the Secure Data Act today, bipartisan legislation aimed at preventing the government from forcing backdoors into encrypted products and services. The act was introduced by Representatives Zoe Lofgren (D-CA) and Thomas Massie (R-KY) and was cosponsored by Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Ted Poe (R-TX) and Matt Gaetz (R-FL). “Encryption backdoors put the privacy and security of everyone using these compromised products at risk,” Lofgren said in a statement. “It is troubling that law enforcement agencies appear to be more interested in compelling US companies to weaken their product security than using already available technological solutions to gain access to encrypted devices and services.”

Android Auto and CarPlay are both pretty great. You plug your smartphone into your car and you’re greeted with a familiar set of icons. In most vehicles on the road, it’s an improvement. Why wade through a confusing interface, when two of the biggest tech companies in the world have made it easy for you to use the map and media apps you already know. But in the tech world, if you’re not constantly improving, something else will appear and automakers, they’re not sitting around.

Apple has reportedly started enforcing an App Store rule regarding location data more stringently. According 9to5mac, the tech giant has already removed a number of apps from the Store that share users’ location to third parties without their explicit consent. In the letter it sent to the affected developers, Apple told them their applications didn’t comply with Legal sections 5.1.1 and 5.1.2 of the App Store Review Guidelines. Those sections state that apps must not transmit “user location data to third parties without explicit consent from the user and for unapproved purposes.”

Apple has been fighting law enforcement over the latter’s many requests (and lawsuits) to have the former unlock iPhones implicated in various crimes. Now, according to a report at TechCrunch, Apple has added a new feature that disables data transfer over USB if the phone isn’t unlocked for a period of seven days. The feature would be re-enabled if the phone is unlocked with a passcode normally.

MOUNTAIN VIEW, CA—Google I/O 2018 has officially kicked off, and with it comes the traditional release of a new Android developer preview. While Android P, as the next major update is still called for now, still has a long way to go until its final release—Google still has three more developer previews planned, with a final consumer build scheduled for Q3 2018—Google took some time at the keynote of its annual developer conference to detail a few new features Android users can expect to see.

The biggest news in Preview 1 was a new design style that was applied to the notification panel, main settings screen, and some system UI bits.

At Google’s I/O keynote, Android VP of Engineering Dave Burke said the forthcoming update will center on three key pillars: intelligence, simplicity, and digital wellbeing.

SEATTLE—The PC is, for many of us, no longer the central hub for our digital and online activities; the phone has taken that role. In this new world, the relationship between the two has flipped: the phone is not a companion device for the PC, but rather, the PC is now a companion device for the phone.

At its Build developer conference today, Microsoft showed a pair of applications that reflect this new world. First are updated versions of the Launcher for Android and Edge for iOS that include support for Timeline, the big new feature of the Windows 10 April 2018 Update. Timeline gives a historic view of the documents, emails, and webpages that you have visited, making it easy and convenient to go back and resume working on your ongoing tasks. With the updated versions of the apps, the Timeline view is now accessible on your mobile

Apple isn’t kidding about its intentions to turn its News app into more than just an aggregator. BuzzFeed has confirmed to Digiday that Apple reached a deal to premiere the documentary series Future History: 1968 through News a week before it reached social networks, YouTube and even BuzzFeed‘s own mobile app. Apple had first crack at the initial three episodes and gave BuzzFeed a cut of the pre-roll ad revenue in addition to featuring the show prominently. It not only highlighted the documentary in its featured video galleries, it sent a notification to people who follow BuzzFeed News.

Some iPhone 7 and 7 Plus models running iOS 11.3 or later are experiencing an issue with their microphones. Some users have reported that after updating, their phones’ microphones stopped working, affecting voice memos, calls, FaceTime and speakerphone. Some also reported that Siri was no longer accessible. But Apple has apparently acknowledged the problem — though not publicly — and an internal document obtained by MacRumors instructs Apple Authorized Service Providers how to proceed if faced with an affected phone.

Google’s Advanced Protection Program can be extremely valuable if you’re a high-profile hacking target who’s willing to trade a ton of convenience for some extra peace of mind. However, you’ve had to use Google’s apps to get that protection — and that’s a pain on iOS, where you have to download Google’s apps. Or rather, you did. As of now, people enrolled in the program can use iOS’ native calendar, contact and email apps rather than having to shake up their smartphone habits. If you log in to your Google account with any of those apps, you’ll get special instructions for completing the sign-in process.

It’s been almost three years since we first came across the Lumos smart cycling helmet, which got our attention with its cunning automatic brake lights and wirelessly-controlled turn signal indicators. The helmet has since been shipping as of late 2016, but the Hong Kong startup didn’t stop there. Today — which happens to be the first day of Bike Month — Lumos is releasing an update that adds gesture control for the helmet’s blinkers via Apple Watch, along with Apple HealthKit integration for automatic cycling tracking.

Back in November, the Israel-based startup Corephotonics filed a lawsuit against Apple for infringing on its patents. Their case stated that the company approached Apple about joining forces on dual lens technology, which Apple rebuffed. Corephotonics alleges that Apple then infringed on its patents with the dual-camera system on the iPhone 7 Plus. Now, Corephotonics has filed a second patent infringement claim to cover the iPhone 8 Plus and iPhone X.

Tablets didn’t exactly take over the computing world, as Apple and Microsoft had predicted years ago. But they have been evolving to the point where they can fill in for a laptop under the right circumstances. Still, how do you ensure that the tablet you buy is good enough for you to leave conventional PCs behind? It’s not always easy — a tablet that’s powerful enough for one person might be overly complicated for another. We have some tips to help you navigate the shopping maze.

Toyota has slowly been entering the modern era with full smartphone integration in its cars, and now it’s time for the company’s upscale Lexus badge. Lexus has revealed that the 2019 ES sedan is its first-ever vehicle to support Apple CarPlay, giving iPhone owners familiar apps and Siri while they ride in style. There’s still no Android Auto support, sadly, but you do get Alexa voice control both in and outside of the car.

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